Journey on the Hogwarts Express
by DramioneShipper365
Summary: AU where the Malfoys help the Grangers onto Platform nine and three quarters. Rated M for later chapters
1. Chapter 1

A.N - Sorry for any errors, looking for a beta if anyone wants. Relatively short chapter to see if it gains interest. Please review!

DISCLAIMER: If any line of dialogue or description sounds similar to the book, it't because I borrowed it from the ever amazing JKR.

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Hermione stepped out of the car and led her parents into Kings Cross Station. She strode confidently towards platforms 9 and 10 and then stopped dead. She had assumed there would be some sort of sign to point her in the right direction, but she was mistaken. There was nothing. And now she was standing there stupidly with a pocketful of galleons and a trunk she could barely lift, clutching a train ticket to a place she didn't know the location of which left from a platform which apparently didn't exist. 

She was trying hard not to panic, then out of the corner of her eye she saw a pale, blond boy walking between who she assumed were his parents. The father looked a lot like him, pale, with light grey eyes and long blond hair pulled back into a ponytail. His mother was also blond, although her eyes were a piercing blue. The boy was pushing a trolley just like hers with a big, heavy looking trunk and _an owl_. Hermione pointed this out to her parents and followed them towards a barrier between the two platforms. 

"Lucius, you go first to show Draco how to do it." The woman said to her husband. The man complied and strode purposefully towards the barrier before disappearing. She had no idea how he had done it, just simply one minute he was there, the next he wasn't. She glanced at her parents who had dumbfounded expressions on their faces, which she took to mean they didn't have any more of a clue than she did. 

She glanced at the large clock on the wall behind her. 10 minutes left. She would have to ask. 

"Excuse me!" Hermione called out to the woman. The boy whipped around, glanced at her, then tapped his mother on the shoulder and gestured in her direction. Hermione took this as a good sign and tentatively walked over to them.

"Excuse me," she repeated, "Could you tell me how to get on to the platform?" 

She looked down at Hermione and briefly glanced at her mother and father before sneering, and seeming to make a decision. "All you have to do is walk straight through the wall between platforms 9 and 10." she told her.

"Thank you very much" she said politely before following her instructions and wheeling her trolley around to face the barrier. It looked very solid. 

She took a few hesitant steps and then broke in to a run. She was going to crash. She closed her eyes and braced herself for impact… and kept running. She stopped and opened her eyes. She was surrounded by a large crowd next to a scarlet steam engine. A sign above her head read Platform 9 3/4. She had done it. 

She heard panting behind her, the boy had obviously run through the barrier after her. He gazed about the platform with similar astonishment and wonder on his face to how she knew she must have looked. 

Hermione walked up to him just as his mother followed him onto the platform. "Thank you" she said to her. She smiled back at her then turned to talk to her husband and son. 

"Should we get you on the train Hermione?" Her father asked. She nodded before helping them load her trunk into a compartment. Somewhere, a whistle blew. She looked at her parents, her mum had tears in her eyes. "Have fun Hermione" her dad said before hugging her tightly. "Do your best" her mother added before doing likewise. Hermione stepped onto the train and closed the door just as the Hogwarts Express left for Hogsmeade Station.


	2. Chapter 2

A.N - Thanks for the positive reviews! Another short chapter, sorry. Will work on making them longer. Please review!

DISCLAIMER: If anything sounds familiar, it is JKR's words, not mine!

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Hermione dug around in her trunk and pulled out her new Hogwarts robes and _Hogwarts: A History_. Her parents had bought it for her when Professor McGonagall took them to Diagon Alley to get her wand, robes and books for school a couple of weeks ago. As soon as she found out she was a witch, she had learned as much as she possibly could. She read extensively about the school, the houses and famous witches and wizards like Professor Dumbledore and Harry Potter. She was pleased to have Dumbledore be her headmaster, he seemed like a great wizard, even if slightly eccentric.

She quickly changed into her robes and settled down into a seat to read. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. She looked up to see the blond boy from the platform. She stood up and opened the door, inviting him in. He took the seat opposite her in the window.

"Hi" she said.

"Hello" he replied. "I'm Draco Malfoy."

"Hermione Granger."

"Thats a nice name." he looked very uncomfortable, he was shifting about in his seat. "Are your parents muggles?" he blurted out. Having come across the term while reading, she knew what it meant.

"Yes, they're dentists." she replied tentatively.

"What's a dentist?" he asked eagerly.

"They look after people's teeth" she responded, slightly confused as to how someone could not know what a dentist was.

They sat in silence for a bit before they started talking about houses. "I want to be in Slytherin, like my parents" Draco said.

"Well, from what I've read, Gryffindor looks by far the best, so I think I would want to be in that."

Before he could reply, there was another knock on the door. A round faced boy stood there, almost in tears before asking "Have you two seen a toad? I've lost mine"

Draco sneered at the boy, but Hermione quickly replied "No, we haven't, but I can help you look for him if you would like?"

"Thank you so much!"

She followed him out of the compartment. "I'm Neville by the way."  
"Hermione" she answered.

"Thanks for your help, Hermione! See you later!"  
"Bye"

Hermione started walking down the train, asking people in various compartments if anybody had seen a toad. She continued like this for a while, until she came to a compartment where a red headed, freckled boy was talking excitedly with another boy with untidy, black hair, broken glasses and a _lightning bolt scar_.

Hermione knocked and entered the compartment. "Have you seen a toad? A boy named Neville lost one."

The redhead glanced at her before replying quickly "No"

It was then that she saw a battered wand raised, pointing at a fat, old rat snoozing on his lap. "Are you doing magic?" she asked, excited to see how the spells she had practiced at home compared to other people's. "Let's see it then"

The spell he used was much longer than any spells she had learned, and she wondered if anything would happen. There was a flash of light, but the rat still looked the same to her. "Are you sure that's a real spell? Well, it's not very good, is it?"

She couldn't resist showing off her skills, she had always been very competitive growing up. Before she knew what she was doing, she had fixed Harry Potter's glasses, and mentioned something about learning the set books by heart, and the dirt on the red head's nose, whose name, she had learned, was Ron Weasley, and had walked out of the compartment and back to her own. Draco was no longer there. Slightly disappointed, Hermione sat down and continued to read _Hogwarts: A History_.


	3. Chapter 3

A.N - Another short chapter, sorry! Hope you enjoy! Please review!

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She looked up from the book when she felt the train start to slow. It was dark outside, but there were many lights on in the distance. "That must be Hogwarts" she thought.

" _We have reached Hogsmeade Station_ " said a cool female voice that seemed to issue from the walls themselves. " _Please leave all luggage on the train. It will be brought up_

 _separately._ "

She jumped down from the carriage onto the platform. It was a cold night, but it was very clear. "Firs' years!" cried a voice. "Firs' years over 'ere!" The speaker was a giant man. He had lots of bushy hair that fell over is face in tangled curls and a big, bushy beard. He led them to the edge of a clear lake, down to a fleet of boats that would evidently take them to the castle. It was breathtakingly beautiful, with many turrets poking out from the top of it. The other first years were all wearing similar expressions of awe at the sight.

When they reached the castle, they were greeted by Professor McGonagall before being led into the great hall, facing an old, patched hat sitting on a three legged stool. The Sorting Hat began to sing, and then the first years were sorted, Professor McGonagall reading their names off a piece of parchment.

She finally reached "Granger, Hermione" and she carefully walked up, trembling slightly. McGonagall placed the Sorting Hat over Hermione's head. "Hmm" She heard. "This is going to be tricky. You could fit into both Ravenclaw and Gryffindor…"

"Please put me in Gryffindor" she thought.

"Gryffindor eh?" the hat said, startling her.

"Y-yes"

"Are you sure?" the hat asked.

"Yes" she repeated, slightly more confidently.

"GRYFFINDOR" she heard the hat call out to the people gathered in the hall.

She stood up, swept the hat off her head and walked on slightly shaky legs to the table where people were applauding her. She sat down and turned to watch the rest of the sorting.

McGonagall finally reached the "M's" and she waited for "Malfoy, Draco." She watched him intently as he swaggered up to the stool and placed the hat on his head. No sooner had it touched his platinum blond locks did it scream "SLYTHERIN" and he strutted off to join their table. Slightly disappointed, Hermione's eyes snapped back to watching the sorting.

She watched as "Potter, Harry" got sorted into Gryffindor and, relieved looking, he sat in a seat across from her. He was eagerly watching the red headed boy he had been with on the train, and breathed a sigh of relief along with a red headed boy sitting next to her when "Weasley, Ronald" was sorted into Gryffindor as well.

When "Zeller, Rose" was finally sorted into Hufflepuff, the sorting ended, and Professor McGonagall picked up the stool and carried it and the hat out of the hall.

She had turned to the boy next to her, noticing a red and gold badge with the letter "P" pinned to his chest, and had struck up a conversation about classes, when the noise in the hall stopped suddenly. She looked around and saw that Professor Dumbledore had stood up to make a speech.

After the very odd and confusing speech consisting of the words "Nitwit, oddment, blubber and tweak" the golden plates and goblets in front of them immediately filled with food and drink. She turned again to the boy beside her, who must have been one of Ron's brothers, as she filled her plate. She was keen to learn as much as she could about her lessons before starting them the next day.

The boy, whose name was Percy, answered her questions eagerly, and she found out that in Transfiguration, she would most likely start off by turning matches into needles, and in Charms, making objects fly.

When the dessert had faded from the plates, leaving them sparkling once more, Dumbledore once again stood up to speak. She listened intently, but he didn't mention anything of too much importance, just a welcome and a few of the new banned items, half of which she didn't even know what they were.

After they sung the strangest school song she had ever heard, they were dismissed, and she, along with the other first years, followed Percy the Prefect up to the Gryffindor common room.


	4. Chapter 4

A.N - Thanks for the reviews! Hope you enjoy this chapter! Sorry, it's a short one. Please review!

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Percy led Hermione and the other Gryffindor first years up many flights of stairs, occasionally through passageways hidden by tapestries or paintings. Hermione didn't pay much attention, she was full, content, very tired and was looking forward to going to bed.

They reached a particularly large painting and Percy stopped, forcing the first years to as well. The painting depicted a woman who was quite fat and was wearing a pink, silk dress, which accentuated her similarity to a large pig. "The Fat Lady" Percy explained to the first years. "The Gryffindor Common room is behind her."

He gave her what was evidently a password and the portrait swung forwards to reveal a hole in the wall which Percy led the first years through into a cozy room filled with squashy armchairs. Everything was coloured red and gold and a fire crackled merrily in a corner. He showed them two flights of stairs which led to their dormitories.

Hermione followed the other girls up to their dormitory. There was 4 other girls sharing with her, and she took a bed between two girls called Parvati and Lavender.

Her first class the next morning was potions with the Slytherins. After breakfast she made her way down to the dungeons, excited to start learning. She lined up with the other Gryffindors and noticed Draco standing with two boys the size of small tanks in the Slytherin line. She waved at him quickly before the door opened with a bang. A teacher was standing in the doorway, staring menacingly down at them. He had greasy black hair that fell to his shoulders and was wearing long, flowing black robes that highlighted his resemblance to a large bat. He came across as someone you wouldn't want to get on the wrong side of.

They filed into the classroom and Hermione moved to sit with Draco, as he was the person that she knew the best so far. She noticed that she was the only Gryffindor not sitting with members of her own house, the others sitting at tables on the other side of the classroom, with her and the Slytherins on the other.

Professor Snape stood at the front of the class, and began talking about some of the different potions he would teach them to make. He then took the roll, and paused when he reached Harry Potter's name.

"Tell me Potter. What would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?"

Harry sat there, dumfounded. He clearly had no idea what Snape was talking about. Hermione, having read Magical Herbs and Fungi several times since purchasing it at Flourish and Blotts, knew the answer, and her hand shot into the air. Draco looked at Hermione out of the corner of his eye, astounded that a mudblood knew something he didn't, but quickly shook it off and turned to face the teacher and Potter.

Snape ignored Hermione completely, and instead berated Harry for not knowing the answer, despite the fact that no one else in the class seemed to have any idea what he was talking about either.

He continued to ask Harry tricky questions, and the smirk on his face seemed to grow every time Harry failed to answer a question. Hermione, determined to make a positive impression, actually stood up, with her fist punching the air, when Harry finally had had enough and replied "I don't know, but I think Hermione does. Why don't you ask her?" The class laughed and Snape finally looked at her, before yelling at her to sit down again.

Slightly miffed, she sat, and wondered why he would bother to ask a question if he didn't want someone to answer. Throughout the exchange, Draco stared at her. How could this jumped up mudblood walk into class, and, despite never knowing anything about magic before she came here, know more than he did?


	5. Chapter 5

A.N - I think this may be my shortest chapter yet, but I want to save the funeral for chapter 6. Sorry! Enjoy! Please review!

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 _2 months later_

Hermione was sitting in the Great Hall, chatting excitedly with Harry and Ron about Christmas, and the holidays that would be starting next week. Hermione wasn't going to stay at Hogwarts with the boys, and was looking forward to going home and seeing all her family and friends from her old school.

The Hall was decked out for the festivities, with no fewer than twelve Christmas trees, adorned with different coloured lights, baubles and other decorations, lined around the walls. The sky was a stormy grey, holding the promise of snow. Thinking longingly of the snowball fights they would have if it snowed, she turned to look at Draco sitting across the hall, and, spotting him stealing glances at her, promptly caught his eye, and began a furious but silent conversation, consisting of mouthed words and glares.

 _"You stole my homework to copy it!"_ she signed, seething.

 _"I borrowed it! And I didn't copy it, I just wanted to see what you had done so I wouldn't fail!"_

 _"You could have just asked!"_ she replied huffily before storming out of the hall.

He found her sulking at one of the tables in the back of the library, so he walked over to her and sat down beside her.

"I'm sorry" he said softly, putting his arm around her.

"It's fine, but you didn't need to take it, I would have given it to you."

At that moment, the bell rang and they rushed off to class - Hermione to Herbology and Draco to Transfiguration.

The next morning at breakfast, Hermione was engrossed in conversation with Harry and Ron when an owl dropped a letter in front of her. She ripped it open eagerly, recognising her mother's handwriting on the envelope, and her face fell.

 _Darling Hermione,_

 _I'm sorry, but your father passed away this morning. We will hold the funeral when you come home for winter holidays._

 _Love,_

 _Mum_

Hermione crumpled the letter in her fist, her eyes tearing up. Stifling a sob, she sprinted out of the hall, Draco rising from the Slytherin table and running after her.

After scouring the castle for over an hour, he found her lying hidden in an alcove on the third floor, crying her heart out. He tentatively walked over to her and sat down beside her. "Whats wrong, Hermione?" In response, she wordlessly handed over the crushed letter and continued to weep. "Oh, Hermione..." he whispered before pulling her close and letting her sob into his shoulder as if nothing would be right again.


	6. Chapter 6

A.N - Hope you enjoy! Please review!

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The next week was awful. She sat alone in a compartment on the Hogwarts Express, taking some comfort in reading one of the books her parents had bought her in Diagon Alley for light reading. There was a note written in her dad's cramped handwriting on the inside cover, telling her to make them proud. She hoped he was.

When they reached Kings Cross Station, she immediately spotted her mother, standing completely still on the edge of the platform, with slightly red and puffy looking eyes. She looked faintly out of place amidst all the witches and wizards surrounding her, mostly because she was one of the only ones wearing muggle clothes. She ran over and gave her a hug, crying into her shoulder as the older woman tried hard not to break down in front of the crowds of people surrounding them.

They got in the car and sped home, where Hermione dragged her heavy trunk into the hallway, then immediately stumbled to the living room and closely examined the many picture frames lining the walls and standing proudly on the mantle. She chose her favourite, one of her and her parents standing in front of the Eiffel Tower two years ago, and took it over to the sofa, hugging it tightly to her chest.

Her mother found her later in a fitful doze, the picture pressed tightly to her chest, her tears still damp on her cheeks. She carefully prised the photo out of her hands, and returned it to its spot on the mantle, smiling faintly at the memory. She then carefully picked Hermione up, and carried her upstairs to bed.

The next day was the funeral. Hermione and her mother got to the church slightly early to see her dad one last time before he was put to rest. She gave him a kiss on his cold cheek before turning and wandering outside to greet guests with the older Granger woman.

The service was beautiful. The coffin was decorated with masses of flowers, there were songs sung, photos shown and a lovely eulogy spoken by his brother, talking about what he had achieved, and how much he loved his family.

Their friends and family had all bought along a plate of food for the reception, and there was an abundance of sandwiches of various kinds, cake and other treats. Hermione however, couldn't eat any of it, despite how many people had come over and pressed something into her hand. She just wanted to go home.

The reception was finally over, and when she walked into her room, she found Hedwig standing on her desk, a letter from a concerned Harry attached to her leg. She hastily wrote a reply, telling him about the service, and that, really, she was ok, attached it to Hedwig and sent her off into the night.

The next morning, there were two more owls sleeping at her desk. One was old and grey, and appeared to have fainted. There were grey feathers all over the desk, he must have landed badly. She carefully pried the letter from him, read it quickly and set it down on the desk.

The other was a handsome screech owl, who sat patiently with his leg stretched out whilst Hermione took the letter from him. Recognising Draco's handwriting, she eagerly ripped it open. She wrote replies to Ron and Draco, before sending the screech owl back, and letting the grey one have a bit more rest before she sent him back too.


	7. Chapter 7

A.N. - Sorry I haven't posted in so long! Sorry also that this chapter is so short, i'll try and get the next ones longer.

DISCLAIMER: Still not my characters. I wish I was that creative, but credit to JKR as usual.

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 _1 year later_

 _Hi Mum,_

 _Sorry, I'm not going to come home for Christmas, I'm going to stay here with my friend._

 _Love,_

 _Hermione_

She attached it to Hedwig's leg along with her mum's present and sent her off.

"You know, you can use my owl if you want." said a voice behind her.

"I know Draco, but Harry is easier to find if I need to ask him." She turned around and hugged him.

"Saint Potter to the rescue" he replied sarcastically.

Hermione laughed and ran down the stairs to class.

She felt guilty for not going home for Christmas, but she simply couldn't bear another Christmas at home without her dad. Her mum was going to her parents, so she didn't feel as bad for leaving her.

Draco was used to getting shunned in the Slytherin common room. The only two "friends" he had in this house were Crabbe and Goyle, simply because they were too stupid to realise he was a joke. He never should have befriended Hermione. The snakes looked down on him for having a mudblood friend. He might have to be mean to her in public so his reputation improved, and also so no word got back to his pureblood maniac father.

He was no stranger to Lucius' punishments, but if his father found out about his friendship with Hermione, he shuddered to think what he would do. He wouldn't kill him because he was the only Malfoy heir, but he would certainly give it his best shot. Or worse. Go after Hermione. Draco couldn't let that happen. He'd rather die. He would owl Hermione and apologise, but he would have to pretend to hate her.

Hermione was startled by a tapping on her bedroom window. She looked out and saw Draco's owl standing on the windowsill. She quickly opened the window and it hopped in, holding his leg out to her.

 _Hermione,_

It read.

 _I'm so sorry, but I'm going to have to pretend to hate you. You know my father. I'm worried that word is going to get back to him from one of the other Slytherins. I can't risk him going after you. I don't want to stop being friends, but I need to keep up appearances._

 _Draco_

Hermione quickly scrawled a response.

 _Ok Draco, I don't think your underdeveloped brain can handle the insults I'm gonna hurl at you._

 _Hermione xx_

Tying it quickly to the owls leg, she sent it on its way.


	8. Chapter 8

_A.N - Hope you enjoy this chapter! Yule Ball next time!_

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 _2 years later_

Draco would never admit this to Hermione, but word about their friendship had reached Lucius the summer of their first year. The Parkinsons had come to the manor, and Pansy never had been very good at keeping things to herself, the nosy bitch. Lucius had been furious, and beat Draco to a pulp, luckily his mum had helped to heal the bruises and breaks. The beatings he could handle. He'd gotten used to it at a very early age, but Lucius was a conniving bastard, and he didn't want harm to come to Hermione from his or any of the other Slytherin's hands.

He thought about this now as he roamed the halls with Parkinson clinging to his arm with a vice like grip. He really fucking hated her. She was such a stuck up, whiney bitch.

Draco sat a the back of the potions class, occasionally noticing he was staring at Hermione's frizzy mane of hair. After his eyes had drifted back to her several times after he had consciously pulled them away, he gave up, and continued to sneakily notice the way the light caught her hair, causing it to shimmer, and how the more humid it got in the classroom, the frizzier it got.

Right before the bell rang, he quickly scrawled a note as he was packing up, and when Snape dismissed them, discreetly slipped it onto Hermione's desk and continued to walk without missing a beat.

Hermione slipped the note off the desk, opened it, then slid it into a book, letting him know that she agreed.

Later that night, Hermione borrowed Harry's cloak, and snuck down to the dungeons, the note reading " _11?_ " Stuck in her mind.

They had developed a system over the last year, whereby one of them would slip a note to the other with a time, and Hermione would borrow the cloak, slip down to Draco's dorm and they would have a sleepover, with a silencing charm on the curtains around Draco's bed so they could talk without the other boys even knowing she was there. It was always good fun and they both looked forward to them.

Stopping at the door to the Slytherin Common Room at exactly 11, the door opened and Draco stepped out. Hermione reached out under the cloak and tapped his shoulder - a signal that she was here, and Draco turned around and walked back into the Slytherin Common Room, Hermione hot on his heels.

They walked quickly up to his dorm, and Draco cast a silencing charm over his bed. Hermione whipped the cloak off and set it down carefully under the bed.

"So," Hermione asked. "What did you want to talk about?"

"Nothing in particular, I just missed talking to you." Draco replied.

"Well, I'm glad you set this up, because I have news!" Hermione squealed. "Krum asked me to the Yule Ball!"

Draco's heart sank so far that he felt it in his toes. He had been working up the guts to ask her, but Krum had ruined it for him. At least she seemed excited. Oh, who was he kidding. He never could have asked her. His father would have absolutely ruined everything if he did.

"That's great, Hermione." He managed to choke out.

"Who are you going with?"

"Pansy, probably." He spat out, a lump in his chest.


End file.
